17th Badminton Match Of 2018: Sharon vs Sam
The 17th daily badminton match between Samuel and Sharon was contested on the 4th April 2018. In what was one of the greatest matches of that year, and the first with a consequence for the loser, Samuel won the match in five closely-fought, gruelling sets to pull one match back in their rivalry. The score in the rivalry would then be 10-7 to Sharon. Match Result Pre-Match The score was 10-6 to Sharon, please see the main page of the rivalry here Before the match took place, the consequence for the loser would be decided. Samuel has a huge fear of dogs, and the country park Ty Maur is full of dogs. Lose, and he would have to go. As well as the extra added pressure of losing by 4 matches in the league, he would also have to face his biggest fear if he had lost. He also needed to beat a player who had beaten him three times in a row in their private league. This was a must-win match. Summary Despite the pressure, he was cool and collected in the first set. With the scores at 11-10 in favour of Samuel, he tried to hit a shot through his legs to win the set. This didn’t work, as Sharon hit a passing shot to win the point. He still would win the set at 13-11. Then, nerves and pressure kicked in. A lot of unforced errors would be played from him and Sharon capitalised on his ‘accident-prone’ playing. There were many service errors in particular, often being hit inside the back two-lines, which are considered out in our matches. This will change, as both competitors have been playing shorter and less-intense points with this system active. Sharon would play an amazing two sets, and it certainly looked like we were heading to the countryside as the scores were two-one. In the fourth and fifth sets, Samuel would hit a lot of return winners from Sharon’s serve. Hade her serve been more varied at times, she would have wrapped up the match with ease in the fourth; she didn’t get a match point at all. However, in the tense fifth set, Samuel, in his second consecutive match point, would shut out the match in style. Despite the fact that Sharon could have possibly rigged the match for Samuel to win, the score would still stand as a seventh point on the board for Samuel. The score was now 10-7 to Sharon Significance If you look at the situation of the forfeit for the loser, the incredibly tense atmosphere the players had for that particular match and the close statistics, then this is one of the greatest matches in the rivalry. If you look at gameplay, then this is one of the worst badmintion matches ever contested. But it was the magic of the match that would sell it to viewers. With Sharon at her peak of powers in Badminton and her winning 2 sets to 1, it looked business as usual and Samuel would be beaten. However, David would slay Goliath and the underdog would win. Despite the awful gameplay, particulary from the winner, it will be one of the best matches the Plassey Badminton court will ever be a venue to.